Elastic-fluid turbine.



W. E. SNOW.

ELASTIC FLUID TURBINE.

APPLIOATION FILED MAE. 7, 1906.

1,042,61. Patented 0011.29, 1912.

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ELASTEIC FLUID TURBINE. APPLIGAT ION FILED MAR. 7, 1906.

Patented Oct. 29, 1912.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2. /6

" bine embodying the embodiment of the invention.

a part of the present invention UNITED sTATEs PATENT orricn.

WILLIAM E. SNOW, OF HYDE PARK, MASSACHUSETTS, ASSIGNOR TO B. F. STURTEVANT COMPANY, 013 BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS, A CORPORATION OF MASSACHUSETTS.

ELASTIC-FLUID TURBINE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Oct. 29, 1912.

Snow, a residing at tain new and useful Improvements in Elastic-Fluid Turbines; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will-senable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

The present invention relates to improve ments in elastic fluid turbines.

One object of the invention is to provide a simple and sensitive governing device for a turbine, in which mechanical connections and moving parts are avoided as'far as possible, and in this respect the invention is intended particularly for use turbines provided with multiple nozzles, where it is desirable to govern the turbine by throwing the nozzles successively into or out of operation.

Other objects of the invention will be hereinafter pointed out in connection with the specific description of the illustrated The invention consists in the turbine hereinafter described, as defined in the claims.

In the drawings Figure 1 is a side eleva tion, partly in section, of an elastic fluid turresent invention; Fig. 2 is a vertical section of the centrifugal pump, one of the shaft journals and one of the nozzles, showing diagrammatically the connection between the pump and the governing valve mechanism; Fig. 3 is a detail view of the paddle wheel of the centrifugal pump; and Fig; i is a detail elevation of the pump casing.

The illustrated embodiment of the invention is. an elastic fluid turbine comprising a casing 1 and a wheel 2 which may be of any usual or suitable type. mounted on a shaft 3 journaledpn' end frames 4 fixed to the casing. The casing is provided with an'annular which supplies live steam or other motive fluid to are several, spaced evenly about the wheel.

Thespeed-governing devices which form comprlse a pump driven by thewheel 2, governing Norfolk and, State of Massachusetts, have invented certhe cylinder and acted u The Wheel is valves for the nozzles 6, and fluid-pressureoperated mechanism connected with the pump and acting to open or close the governing valves and throw the nozzle into or out of opleration to govern the speed of the wheel. he pump, shown particularly in Figs. 2 and 3, is of the centrifugal type, and comprises a paddle wheel 7 in the form of a plate with marginal serrations, which is secured to the end of the wheel shaft 3 so as to be rotated rapidly thereby. The pump casing 8 is in two halves, formed integral with the upper and lower halves of the easing 9 in which the bearing blocks 10 for the shaft 3 are mounted. The pump casing 8 has an annular passage 11. The lower part of the journal casing 9 forms a reservoir for oil which is admitted through a passage 12 to the pump casing. When the turbine is in operation the rotation of the paddle wheel 7 forces the oil into the annular, passage 11 with a pressure varying with the speed of rotation of the turb1ne.

As shown in Fig. 2, each nozzle 6 is supplied with steam through an inlet port 13 controlled by agoverning plunger valve 14. The valve 14 slides in a cylinder 15 and has astem 16 projecting through the back of pen by a compression spring 17 hich normally holds the valve in open position. The cylinder 15 is connected by a pipe 18 with the pump. As the speed of the turbine rises and the pressure on the oil in the cylinder 15 and the pipe 18 increases a point is reached at which the oil pressure, acting upon the back-of the 7 Valve 14:, overcomes the initial compression of the spring 17, whereupon the governing valve is immediately closed and the action of the nozzle 6 is interrupted. It is considered preferable to make the spring 17 of such length and to otherwise so arrange and adjust the parts that the closing action of the governing valve whena certain speed is reached,.-shall be sudden and complete, so

that the nozzle is eitherin full operation orout of operation, since the operation of the machine s more economical when the nozzle 1s operating under full head than when operating with only a partial supply of steam, and a gradual closing of the governing valve is therefore undesirable. This mode of operation is secured in the illustrated eminder 15, so that the valve, once started in.

motion, will come to rest only when fully ated and will there remain until a substantial fall in speed and oil-pressure permite it to be quickly pened again by the lihe opening movement of the limited by a shoulder on the In order that the quick and complete openuud closing? of the governing valves may served in a multiple nozzle turbine ausing the governing devices to n s'dden and uneven operation, the hings which the several governing v ;are controlled may be adjusted to dif- "or degrees of force, so that as the oil ssure rises the governing valves are closed 1 succession, and as the pressure falls they opened in inverse succession, so that lllG such nozzles as are operating at any we are operating under a full head of am, the increase or diminution of steam ied to the wheel as a whole is gradual, only by the operation of one nozzle e. e centrifugal pump is utilized also to y the shaft journals with aconstant lie lubricant. The passage 11 is contented by a passage 21, formed in the pump ump casing and projecting into a cenongitudinal bore 23 in the wheel shaft 2 By means of radial passages 524 comiminieating with the bore 123 the oil entering under pressure through the passage 21 is conducted to the bearing surfaces of the shaft journal. The oil escaping from the ends of the journal is caught again in the al casing 9. The supply of oil in the voir is maintained by in reducing oil 1 necessary through. a pipe 25 and an vol-flow 26 is provided to prevent flooding of the casing. The passage 23 passes com etely through the shaft 3 "journals are supplied with oil. Although, for convenience in combining functions of lubricating and governing, centrifugal pump is supplied with oil an operating fluid, other fluids may be use in the governing devices. Except in to s a centrifugal pump is specified in the el ms it will be understood that pumps e was types may be used, although the igal pump is considered preferable it operation is very uniform, there being fluctuations of pressure such as occur in )IL pumps. The invention in general is ot limited to the details of construction forth in the description of nd operation set "lflg a, with a nipple 22 fixed axially in so that both of nmate the illustrated embodiment, but may be embodied in other forms broadly defined by the claims.

I claim- 1. An elastic fluid turbine, having, in combination, a wheel, .a pump actuated thereby, a nozzle, a fluid pressure controlled plunger valve therefor, a cylinder within which the valve fits, and connections between the pump and the cylinder through which the fluid acted on by the pump is directed against the back of the valve to operate it in accordance with the speed of the wheel,

substantially as described.

2. An elastic fluid turbine,l1aving, in combination, .a wheel, apump actuated thereby, a nozzle, .alluid pressure controlled plunger valve therefona cylinder within which the valve fits, and connections between the pump and theeylinder through which the fluid acted upon by the pump is directed against the back of the valve to operate it, substantially as described.

3. An elastic fluid turbine having, in combination, a wheel, a pump actuated thereby, a plurality of nozzles, governing valves for the nozzles, fluid-pressure-actuated means connected with the pump for closing the valves, and springs connected with the valves and adjusted to different degrees of strength so as to permit the valves to close successively as the speed of the wheel increases, substantially as described.

4. An elastic fluid turbine, having, in combination, a Wheel, a centrifugal pump actuated thereby, a nozzle, a fluid pressure con trolled plunger valve therefor, a cylinder within which the valve fits, and connections between the pump-and governing valvecylinder for directing the fluid acted upon by the pump against the back of the valve to operate it in accordance with the speed of the wheel, substantially as described.

5. An elastic fluid turbine,-having, in combination, a wheel, a centrifugal pump actuated thereby, a nozzle, a cylinder communieating with the nozzle, a plunger valve fitting within the cylinder for governing the flow of steam through the nozzle, a conduit leading from the pump to the cylinder back of the valve, and a spring for normally valve open, siibstant-ially as do bination, a wheel, a pump actuated thereby, a nozzle, :1 fluid pressure controlled plunger valve, a cylinder Within which the valve fits, means normally opening the valve, and

vmeans between the pump and cylinder for transmitting the pressure generatedby the pump directly to the back of the valve whereby the pressure on the valve tov closeit varies in accordance with the speed of the Wheel, Substantially as described.

8. An elastic fluid turbine, having,in eombinat-ion, a wheel, a pump actuated thereby,

a nozzle, a fluid-pressure controlled plunger valve, a cylinder .withinwliicbitlie fits,

a conduit forming-knee eq'mmunicatien betweenthe cylinderlend pump 7 for transmit- ;ting the pressure generated by the pum directly to'ft-lle back of the-valve in jaccpr ance with the sp' described.-

In testimon whereefl afliii m signature,

or. the wheel, substmuau ee 

